Our next story of awesome achievement comes from a much beloved member of our community. Jeremy R. has been a strong thread of the community fabric that makes United Barbell the uniquely awesome place it is. Here is his story of how he has used his time at UB to re-establish his relationship to fitness:

I was in the worst shape of my adult life when I first stepped into United Barbell in 2011. I'm not sure I knew it at the time, or even during my CrossFit "on ramp" sessions with coach Trent - because he was only encouraging. It wasn't until I started doing actual classes that I realized how out-of-shape I was. But the support of the coaches and the other athletes at UB kept me going. Just 1 day a week at first, then 2, then 3, and eventually 4-6 days a week. Now 4 years later, at the age of 38 with kid #2 on the way, I have worked my way out of that fitness slump, and might even be in the best shape of my life.

In one of my first classes we did burpees as part of our warm-up. Coach Olivia asked me to stop after about 10 because I was flushed and sloppy and probably looked like I was about to puke. 10 burpees? That was maybe 30 seconds of work, and I was done. The workouts just plain sucked in the beginning. I worked out on my lunch break and went back to the office completely depleted, barely functional. I could physically only go once a week at first. Finishing a workout last, as I did often, was never fun, but you know what makes it a hell of a lot better: when everyone who finishes before you cheers you on. Nothing makes it suck less in the moment, but afterward, when I reflected on it, it was that support from fellow athletes and coaches alike that made me more willing to go through it again, and again. You will never push that hard by yourself.

In 2012 I got my wife, Lisa, to join me at UB. She got hooked pretty quickly. We’ve had a blast representing UB in a few local competitions together and with other UB athletes. And in 2014 we created an online CrossFit WOD video project called WODwell, featuring lots of fellow UB athletes in our videos.

CrossFit did change my life, but it’s really all about how supportive my United Barbell coaches and the whole community were when I was at my least-fit.

In 2012 I got my wife, Lisa, to join me at UB. She got hooked pretty quickly. We’ve had a blast representing UB in a few local competitions together and with other UB athletes. And in 2014 we created an online CrossFit WOD video project called WODwell, featuring lots of fellow UB athletes in our videos.

CrossFit did change my life, but it’s really all about how supportive my United Barbell coaches and the whole community were when I was at my least-fit.